Players should start to play football

Imagine an America without football. That's the prediction of Antwaan Randle El in the Daily Herald Jan. 20. He says, "Right now, I wouldn't be surprised if football isn't around in 20, 25 years."

Anyone who watches the game can quickly notice the violence and hatred amongst the players. I believe the Bengals lost to the Steelers because of violence and hatred, which dashed their opportunity to continue their pursuit of the Super Bowl.

If you have been watching football for a while, you'll remember when players tackled each other and then helped them off the ground. Today's players tackle with the intent to maim their opponents and cause injury and have no problem stepping on them while getting up. Over the years, players have gotten bigger and heavier, and when they tackle, there's a whole lot of weight dropping on the tackled player.

With all the concern about concussions and career ending injuries, the players need to get the message that their safety depends, in part, on each other and not totally on the NFL. Yes, the NFL is a business and want to protect their players but it's the players who have to take some of the responsibility for their injuries. Watch the Pro-Bowl and see the difference, although there isn't much on the line except pride. They tackle to tackle, not to maim.

If football is played the way it should be played, perhaps Randle's final observation, "Football players are in a car wreck every week," would be unnecessary. Unless players begin to play football, injuries will continue to pile up and we will continue witnessing car wrecks week after week.

Fred Dryden

Huntley